Not to mention this is the best possible opportunity to toss the "independent contractor" BS back in their faces if/when they try to pressure people into going. 

So, they are gonna make a big deal about Renee going, aren't they ? #thisishope and shit ? Can't wait...

9 hours ago, Beast said:

They must be living their childhood dreams, like a WWE Fantasy Camp.

It's been mentionned in the Evolution thread, but it's actually what everything is all about now. The character arks of everybody is "living their WWE dream" and once a year "having a Mania Moment". Hell, even John Cena was all about this stupid stuff this year at Mania. The product doesn't matter, there's only one message that is conveyed : WWE - WWE - WWE - WWE - WWE. It's the ultimate stage of branding, where the products don't even matter. WWE is Starbucks. Awful product, awful company parading as progressive with totalitarian practices.

Just got this e-mail from WWE Network:

It pretty much encapsulates every single issue the tone deaf WWE has right now. 

It's so perfect, you can't even make a joke !  

Quote

 

While no official announcement has been made, a notable name is now being advertised for Crown Jewel.

WWE.com's events page for Friday's show in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia now lists Hulk Hogan among the "featured superstars." The events page has also been updated to reflect the changes that were made on this week's television, with Bobby Lashley replacing John Cena in the World Cup tournament and Samoa Joe replacing Daniel Bryan in the WWE Championship match.

 

https://www.f4wonline.com/wwe-news/hulk-hogan-advertised-wwe-crown-jewel-269141

Looks like the new official WWE Branding is to call it "Crown Jewel: A Global PPV Event" based on them calling it that every time it was mentioned on Smackdown.

But where on the globe is it happening? Like evolution, it's a mystery. 

2 hours ago, Fando said:

https://www.f4wonline.com/wwe-news/hulk-hogan-advertised-wwe-crown-jewel-269141

I guess if you're going to promote a grotesque disaster, you might as well double down on it. 

2 hours ago, sek69 said:

Looks like the new official WWE Branding is to call it "Crown Jewel: A Global PPV Event" based on them calling it that every time it was mentioned on Smackdown.

But where on the globe is it happening? Like evolution, it's a mystery. 

It's so global that it takes place wherever you want to imagine it

So it looks like Hulk's going to be the "host" of the show now, wonder if that means the New Day will opt out of going. 

He's going to call it Brown Jewel. I am almost willing to bet money on that shit.

Hulk Hogan as host should play it up like a total farce. He should start off at the Sean Mooney control center and pop up throughout the show at "various locations", complete with poorly disguised green screen settings behind him. He can name drop all the famous venues he's wrestled at & break into flexes and poses at random intervals. I'd watch for that.

To be fair, if WWE is really all about introducing the Saudis to American culture to break down barriers, I can't think of anyone who personifies 2018 America more than Hulk Hogan.

Isn't the prince basically just fantasy booking his favorite Attitude Era stars, and WWE is doing their best to accommodate his every wish? That's the impression I've gotten anyway.

... If so, gotta wonder how many missed calls have been placed to 317 Gimmick Street.

30 minutes ago, sek69 said:

So it looks like Hulk's going to be the "host" of the show now, wonder if that means the New Day will opt out of going. 

Well given how they are portrayed for the last year or so,  I wonder if they would even cross that line.  I mean it is one thing to talk about it on Twitter but not when the paychecks matter.  Hell I wouldn't be surprised if they just give him a bunch of pancakes

 

This is what the term "wrestling bubble" looks like:

From perennial lackey, stooge, and second banana Tommy Dreamer:

Quote

In 1995 WCW went to North Korea

over 150,000 fans attended
All the political turmoil was put aside
People were united for a moment in time through professional wrestling
I was part of the 1st LIVE gathering after 9/11
I was confused, scared, angry
It was Vince McMahon who told everyone it was our choice if we wanted to perform and he said Its our jobs(the wrestlers) to help put smiles on people faces and help people heal.
I cried when Lillian Garcia sang The National Anthem. I felt patriotism for the first time.
The most horrific event on US soil that changed all of our lives and it was wrestling for me (then baseball Mike Piazza HR) that helped me heal. We will never forget but we did smile & begin to heal as a community. A wrestling community.
I know the world was different in 1995 and before 9/11/2001 social media wasnt as strong as it is. Peoples agendas weren't pushed, 
Just giving my opinion of wrestling and the entire WWE Saudi Arabia show
From my personal perspective
We never stopped something in our country when something horrible happened.
All the wrestlers that I know that went said they had a great time and the kids made it worth it.
Putting smiles on peoples faces is our job
Thank you Vince

"Putting smiles on people's faces."

Pure WWE-speak.

Someone's sure hard-up for a job at the Performance Center...

Glad to know that Ric Flair main eventing helped to bring change to North Korea

Especially since this North-Korea deal was all Inoki's diplomatic stuff (same kind he was doing in Irak) and neither company was paid to do the show there by the North Korea government. 

Hogan as the host ? It's fucking perfect. Hey, can't have Homophobic Warrior, but we can bring back Racist Hogan. 

This shit is gonna be epic. I'm almost tempted to watch it.... (yeah, I'm going troll-fishing there ) (PS : of course not. But I can't wait for the reports by Meltz and others)

The Daniel Bryan story is a bit too complicated to summarize here and I don't want to just copy/paste from the WON, but I just wondered if anyone else read that and if so, what your thoughts were. In short, it was a big decision he made a long time ago.

3 hours ago, El-P said:

Especially since this North-Korea deal was all Inoki's diplomatic stuff (same kind he was doing in Irak) and neither company was paid to do the show there by the North Korea government. 

Honest question here, not a troll: how did they get paid for that show? It wasn't explicitly government propaganda like the SA show will be, but I always assumed the NK government at least subsidized the show

I honestly have no idea, but Meltz mentioned it earlier this week and said they didn't get paid by the government do to the show (they did force the people to attend though). New Japan was printing money at this time, so who knows...

32 minutes ago, Charles (Loss) said:

The Daniel Bryan story is a bit too complicated to summarize here and I don't want to just copy/paste from the WON, but I just wondered if anyone else read that and if so, what your thoughts were. In short, it was a big decision he made a long time ago.

I was kinda surprised Bryan wasn't aware of Saudi Arabia and how they operate, but it makes sense. Seems he went "nah, fuck this" after the GRR.

Also found interesting how he asked to lose to the Miz at Super Showdown, the quick pin was clearly a middle ground to not blow off the feud as he didn't want it to end yet.

3 hours ago, C.S. said:

All the wrestlers that I know that went said they had a great time and the kids made it worth it.

I believe he's referring to the last Saudi Arabia event here and I wanted to just point out how much I loathe the idea that just because John Cena or anyone who was on the last show (or, if you're a fan, watched the last show), that means you're not allowed to be opposed to the event now.

There's nothing wrong with changing your opinion or stance on an issue over time or when new information is brought to light. 

Also, I'm not sure Dreamer even knows what point he's trying to make in this incoherent rant. Is he comparing the Saudi Arabian fans to Americans post-9/11? I'm not sure the metaphor works. Saudi Arabia wasn't attacked by a journalist who got beheaded. I get it - "the show must go on" after a tragedy. But this wasn't an act of terrorism against an entire country. This was a government-backed murder that the Saudis failed to cover-up. 

And, to be clear, no one is saying the common people of Saudi Arabia don't deserve entertainment or that all Saudi Arabians are monsters - but its been made abundantly clear that this show is about putting a smile  on the face of the royal family. So, fuck off, Tommy Dreamer, for saying that this show is about putting smiles on people's faces when half the population isn't even allowed to attend. I know its a thin line, but that's why I think its different when artists perform in Israel, for example. Netanyahu isn't bringing Radiohead to Tel Aviv as a political PR move or because he was super into In Rainbows. 

Finally, Dreamer mentions how after 9/11 "all political turmoil was set aside." Its the same now. A vast majority of Americans and American politicians, on both sides of the aisle, believe the WWE going to Saudi Arabia is a bad idea. 

 

5 hours ago, ...TG said:

Honest question here, not a troll: how did they get paid for that show? It wasn't explicitly government propaganda like the SA show will be, but I always assumed the NK government at least subsidized the show

Every year in NK they have a big festival where everyone is basically marched into the big stadium to watch the government sponsored show.  They made a point to get Inoki because A: they know he's a giant mark for himself and B: his mentor was Rikidozan who was from NK and was (probably still is) one of their national sports heroes.